Teen burned after being set ablaze for ‘fire challenge’ by stepmom
A man and a woman in Redstone, Pa., are accused of setting a 13-year-old boy on fire for an online "fire challenge" and refusing to take him to the hospital.
William Kirby, 41, and Connie Kirby, 37, poured rubbing alcohol on the boy's back and lit it on fire, WPXI reported.
The incident occurred in February 2014 as part of the "fire challenge," which police described in documents as "when you pour alcohol on a person's buttocks and light it."
The boy claimed it was the stepmother who made him do it.
A police report said Connie Kirby had him do it twice, and it went out quickly the first time. The second time, he was on fire for about a minute and his sisters extinguished the fire with Kool-Aid, WTAE reported.
When the boy asked to go to the hospital, his father and stepmother refused. Documents said his wounds — serious burns on 16 percent of his body — became infected.
The boy's mother, Candra Burkes, went to police a year-and-a-half later when she found out.
William and Connie Kirby are charged with simple assault, child endangerment and reckless endangerment. Connie Kirby also faces an aggravated assault charge.
Contact Kristen DeSilva at kdesilva@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @kristendesilva
